Can someone use my Gift Card (M&S) if they have a photo of the barcode? What to do if so...

soolin

JillyBaby66 said:

Congratulations - I would have been chuffed with that 😄 but that astonishing  ! Surely it leaves the system wide open to abuse.  Anyone with printer could scan it in and copy without the owner's permission ?  I guess if you were good with that stuff and had a half decent graphics app  you could mock one up from scratch ?
I think they need to take a serious look at their procedures !
PS this reminded me of a little while back when they upgraded their Loyalty Card which I'd previously had stored on my phone but no longer worked as it's ancient 😂 They sent out several discount offers and a £5 voucher. I showed the email on my phone and even a screenshot of the barcode ( off my tablet which I don't take shopping as a rule 😉 ) They refused it as they needed the "actual card". 🤔

I think you might be overthinking this- if someone has access to your emails then I would suggest you have bigger issues than someone printing off your email and using a card gift. 

Using codes and bar codes is normal for gift cards, I use Amazon cards whenever there is one of those top up offers and all that takes to use is the random stream of digits and numbers - so I wouldn't flash those around or allow someone into my email account that might steal them.

I also suspect that the chances of a scammer accidentally managing to recreate a code or bar code digitally that actually works is miniscule and would take longer to do than to go out and earn the equivalent money. 

Every day on Facebook people are trying to sell gift cards etc, and all you see are other people warning them to remove or blur photos of any bar codes or QR codes as they can be used. It is not difficult and as so many places now use scannable codes to check in on places for track and trace issues (and they are all photocopied and sometimes poor prints) I would think that people will start to become more aware of exactly how easy it is to use data on phones and via camera phones etc. M and S sparks even offer a digital service on the phone now which I keep meaning to switch to rather than having to remember to carry around my physical sparks card. 

jon81uk

JillyBaby66 said:

Congratulations - I would have been chuffed with that 😄 but that astonishing  ! Surely it leaves the system wide open to abuse.  Anyone with printer could scan it in and copy without the owner's permission ?  I guess if you were good with that stuff and had a half decent graphics app  you could mock one up from scratch ?
I think they need to take a serious look at their procedures !
PS this reminded me of a little while back when they upgraded their Loyalty Card which I'd previously had stored on my phone but no longer worked as it's ancient 😂 They sent out several discount offers and a £5 voucher. I showed the email on my phone and even a screenshot of the barcode ( off my tablet which I don't take shopping as a rule 😉 ) They refused it as they needed the "actual card". 🤔

Mocking any old barcode up wouldn't work as there would be be no money in the "account" attached to the barcode number. If you just made up the e-gift card yourself you would still need a valid barcode number that has had credit loaded on to it.

Also with regards to someone "scanning it and copying it" they would need to get hold of the e-gift card in the first place from you. If you drop the printed paper, they might as well use that copy, no need to scan it!

JillyBaby66

Thank you for both your responses they're very helpful and informative, although I've only been online around 3 years, I think I'm careful but as I've never used gift cards was surprised how easy it was to steal them.

I was just trying to comment that M&S could be more sympathetic to the OP as, they:
- advised her that it was perfectly fine to resell the gift card on eBay ( she knows that's not the case now  ) and COULD be amenable to a goodwill gesture if not full replacement

  The comment  about my Loyalty Card issues were to demonstrate inconsistent methods. I had to present the actual plastic card ( not even their email or shot of barcode on my phone was acceptable ) just to get £5 & 20% off a bra, quote: "we can only accept cards or the loyalty app onto which discounts must be preloaded" I DID have the virtual card on my phone but when they upgraded it wouldn't work anymore ( it needs iOS 11 or above and a have an ancient iphone5 😂  - Nectar have done the same recently ,too )  that was the issue as I didn't realise til I was at the till - I had to reload the app on my newer, 10" Android tablet and that take that into store to be scanned at the till then switch back to a plastic card from then  onwards.

Yes, I need to get a new phone 😂 but refurbished phones are one of the few things I'm nervous about buying online 🤪

I just felt this incompatible with them being perfectly happy with to accept a printout or a screenshot for Gift Cards the value of which was considerably higher.

As for copying:
I realise now that mocking one up would be unlikely and I assume that if one gets access to a printout or screen shot then that's that, it will be accepted in any form as long as the barcode is present and valid. That there's no way of proving ownership or theft.

I'm a confirmed ebayer ( I'm disabled, on a limited budget and it's a godsend ) but only as a Buyer and never for gift cards so I didn't know that they were so vulnerable to abuse.

Ironically, I ended up on this thread as I was looking for advice on how to Return an Item on eBay under the 30 Day Money Back Guarantee as I'd never had to do it before , only once to a Business Seller who offered Refunds ( I've made over a 1000 Purchases from some brilliant Sellers, most who've gone above and beyond and who I'm loyal to in return. I've been very fortunate 😀 )
 I ended up reading several posts from yourself, soolin ( brilliant name & avatar, I think we have something in common 😉 ) which helped a lot 👍
Following your advice,  I've now raised a SNAD return which the Seller has contested so currently waiting the 8 days to escalate to eBay 🤞 I just need to figure out to get to the only PO in a 10m radius that prints out Return Labels but has no disabled  or nearby parking 😒 during a Lockdown 🙄
Last time I just paid the £4:10 myself so as to use the local PO where I CAN park. Oh, well...
If I need anymore help with this, I hope it's ok to post again myself ? 🙏

soolin

JillyBaby66
Please do post on here, we are not the busiest of boards anymore but we do sometimes find something to talk about. It is interesting to share thoughts sometimes as ebay rules and T and Cs are not always that easy to understand, and it is useful to come on here and clarify. I've often sought advice which where I have been confused by something, but where another regular  has been able to show me clearly and quickly where I was misreading or misunderstanding something. 

Tunstallstoven

Good luck with your SNAD case, JillyBaby66. And thanks again for your input (and to everyone else for the input for that matter). What I would also add is my annoyance that when I contacted M&S - after the event but before the money had been stolen - they were unable (unwilling?) - to help. Almost felt a bit like calling the police to say there's a burglar in the house who's about to take some valuable items, and then saying well they've started now so they might as well finish... Not quite the same I appreciate, but it's how it left me feeling.

Incidentally, not that it's too important, but I'm a "he"

JillyBaby66

Thank. soolin, that's brilliant 😀 ( If you bump into Avon say hi 😉 - big sci-fi, especially Doctor Who & Blake's 7, fan here 👽 )
Oops, sorry,  Seagull27 🤭 no idea why I did that - you obviously sound very manly 😉😂
I'm still furious for you 😡 As it hadn't been used when you first contacted them and you had the original with the ref. no., I still don't get why they didn't "cancel" it for you BEFORE the thief ( for that's what they are ) cashed it in 🤷🏼‍♀️
 None of us can afford to lose money especially at the moment and naive I know, but I did expect better of M&S.